Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Stargate Atlantis dips its toe into the horror genre in the newest episode, "Whispers!" To talk about the episode, GateWorld editors Darren and David are joined by Tame Farrar, one of our top-notch forum editors. Does Stargate do horror well? Was it a good episode for returning fan favorite Carson Beckett? How did the all-woman team work out?

We also run down the latest Stargate news headlines and GateWorld site features, and hear more listener mail from Stargate fans. And we also have an exclusive preview of our upcoming new interview with actor David Nykl ("Radek Zelenka")!

This Week's Listener Question: It's Teyla's turn at bat in this week's new episode, "The Queen!" Tell us what you think of her character and how she has been used -- or underused -- in the past four-plus years.

Call the GateWorld Podcast Hotline now and we'll play some of your responses in next week's show! Just dial:

616-712-1647(Long distance rates apply)

You can also leave a comment below, or post on the Podcast Feedback thread at the forum.

Next Week: We'll talk about Friday's new episode, "The Queen." Tune in at 10 p.m. (9 Central) on SCI FI, and then join us for the GateWorld Podcast on Tuesday.

It embodies the vampire love Mick St. John ... AlloCiné Series met Alex O'Loughlin, the hero of "Moonlight"!

AlloCiné Series: In episode 8, there is a sentence which seems to me essential to understanding the character and the series. Josef told Mick that it must stop hate what he is a vampire. What do you think?

Alex O'Loughlin : "Indeed, it is a capital sentence. And that echoed his primary motivation to become a private detective. As a vampire, he must feed on blood to survive. Becoming a private detective and track down criminals give him a reason to live and move away from the predator that is basically it. Fighting evil is also outside the combat evil in him, to keep distance vampire and move closer to the man he was and that he would like to be both. Mick is a humanist. He denies what is and is in constant monitoring of its true nature. He built a line of conduct strictly, with very strong moral principles. Josef is the only one who can break this because it will fully assume its nature..."

For nearly four years the air traffic controller of the Pegasus Galaxy has been Technician Chuck, played by Canadian actor Chuck Campbell. First introduced in Season One's "The Brotherhood," the role quickly become a favorite among fans. Now with doors closing on Atlantis the series, but about to open on Atlantis DVD movies, GateWorld sat down with the actor to discuss the recent news and his opinions on the matter.

Our video interview with Campbell was recorded at Creation's Official Stargate Convention in Vancouver, where the show is filmed. In that segment, we talk about the introduction of a second technician, some of the more interesting episodes in the new season, and where Chuck would like to see his character journey before the end.

Please Note: The first page of this interview was conducted by telephone hours before its launch, and is only available in transcript form [at the link above]. The following pages are from April's video interview.

GateWorld's video interview with Chuck runs almost 10 minutes, and requires QuickTime 7.0 or higher. The interview is also available at GateWorld Play!

A brief excerpt:

GateWorld: What are you shooting today?

Chuck Campbell: Today we are shooting episode 520, which is the last episode of the ... the last episode! Yeah.

GW: It's the last episode of everything!

CC: I think they did get the green light to do a movie, which is good.

GW: Definitely. But this is the end of an era for you guys. How's the atmosphere on set? Is it somber?

CC: It's half and half, David. I think the somberness is partially due to a lot of people just [not knowing] what's going to be next for them, which is part of this industry. That comes with it. Then it's also five years of working with the same people, which you become kind of tight like any job would be if you were there for five years. They know in less than a month that they'll be saying goodbye.

The way it usually works with this industry is you go where the work is, so chances are all of us being together once again, unfortunately, is slim. But that is the industry. It was enough time to make some good friendships. It's always sad when you've got to say goodbye to that.

The man who made sci-fi cool again with hits like LOST and ALIAS goes for three in a row with his latest conspiray thriller FRINGE. Get the inside scoop from Abrams about the show soon everyone will be talking about!

And other celebrities!Link for Sketch Cards for Breast Cancer, featuring Women in SciFi:

It's 2008 and time for a new fundraiser! My friend Marco over at 258west.com came up with this -- recruiting generous artists to create sketch cards to auction off for the cause! You'll notice lots of tributes to great women of Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Comics: Wonder Woman, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, River Tam, Dana Scully, Ellen Ripley, Starbuck, Princess Leia and so many more!

Top Rated NBC Comedies & Dramas Now Available on iTunes in Stunning HD

NEW YORK and SAN FRANCISCO — September 9, 2008 — Apple® and NBC Universal today announced the return of NBC programming to the iTunes® Store (http://www.iTunes.com) including NBC networks' top 10 series available immediately for purchase and download in both standard definition and stunning high definition. iTunes customers can choose programming from NBC, USA Network, SCI FI Channel, Bravo, Sleuth and NBC News including favorites such as the award-winning and critically acclaimed "Heroes,” and the Emmy award-winning programs "The Office,” "Battlestar Galactica” and "30 Rock.” NBCU standard definition television shows on the iTunes Store are $1.99 per episode and HD programs are available for just one dollar more at $2.99 per episode and select library content is available for $.99. Additional NBCU programming from Oxygen, Telemundo, Mun2 and NBC Sports will be available on iTunes soon.

"The return of our shows to iTunes is terrific news for everyone who loves television and the ease and convenience of Apple's iTunes,” said Jeff Zucker, President and CEO, NBC Universal. "And now, by offering consumers a variety of new options, our fans have even more ways to enjoy our content.”

"We are thrilled that NBC is back on iTunes in time for the Fall TV season,” said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "NBC has some of TV's most popular shows and now customers can purchase and download them from iTunes in SD or stunning HD.”

iTunes customers can also purchase a Season Pass which allows viewers to buy an entire season of programming at a discounted price. In addition, NBC Universal is offering one free episode from each of their top series, available in either SD or HD, on the iTunes Store for the next two weeks. The premiere episodes of upcoming NBC shows, such as "Knight Rider,” "My Own Worst Enemy” and "Kath & Kim” will be available on iTunes a week before their broadcast premieres later in September and October, with subsequent episodes available the day after broadcast. NBC is also making full episodes of several vintage television shows available on iTunes for $.99, including "The A-Team,” "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour,” "Miami Vice,” "Kojak” and the original "Battlestar Galactica.”

Please be sure to confirm the times with your local listings -- 'Beyond Betrayal,' starring Richard Dean Anderson and Susan Dey.

Richard stars as a sociopathic cop searching for the estranged wife he has abused, played by Susan Dey. Although she has gone into hiding, she is unable to escape the threat he poses, both to her, and to the new man in her life.

This is one of Mr. Anderson's few "dark roles" -- and he provides a chilling performance, as his character, Bradley Matthews, journeys further away from redemption.

Filmed in Vancouver, BC, Canada, there are some other familiar faces from Stargate SG-1 in the cast, including: Tamsin Kelsey (Thor's Hammer and Thor's Chariot), Jerry Wasserman (Touchstone and Inauguration) and Robin Mossley (Window of Opportunity and Morpheus).

From Entertainment Tonight in 1994, a video clip with Richard Dean Anderson and Susan Dey on the set of "Beyond Betrayal," as they perform a stunt in the movie, with the assistance of Dan Shea. (The quality of the video is not perfect, my apologies.)

...One cool thing about “The Queen” I really liked was that we hired a new actress to play another Wraith queen. The actress, Apollonia Vanova, did a great job, and the prosthetic make-up produced by Todd Masters and his people was especially cool. The prosthetics team works by using the actor’s own face structure, so each Wraith looks as individualistic as we humans do. Obviously way more difficult and intricate than a simple Halloween mask, as I’m sure you’ve noticed. And Apollonia’s facial features are very different than, say, Andee Frizzell, who has played a Wraith queen on our show numerous times, so she becomes a very different Wraith queen. In fact, another Wraith queen in this episode also looks very different and individualistic (hint!)...